Electrical flush receptacle



Jan. zz, 1924. 1,481,771

Wn R. WORKMAN ELECTRICAL FLUSH RECEPTACLE Filed Nov. s. 1921 1 2 sheets-sheet 1 INI/ENTOR.

Ja'n. 22 1924. 1,481,771

- w. R. woRKMAN ELECTRI C AL FLUSH RECEPTACLE Filed Nov. 5, 1921 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 fr 4/a. i /b Patented Jan. 22, 1924.

UNITED STATES WILLIAM R. WORKMAN, OF AUBURN, NEW YORK.

ELECTRICAL FLUSH RECEPTACLE.

Application led November 5, 1921. Serial No. 513,094.

1 MAN, a citizen of the United States, residing lll at Auburn, in the county of Cayuga and State of New York, have invented certain` new and useful Improvements in Electrical Flush Receptacles, of which the following is a specification.

This invention appertains to electrical fittings, such as lamp and plug receptacles, outlets, switches, and the like generally, and more particularly to types of the same capable fo being installed with their front faces disposed flush, or substantially flush in the plane of the wall or other surface in which they are positioned. 1

The principal object of the invention is to provide for a Hush receptacle construction for lamps, plugs, switches, or the like, and one of a nature designed to meet the requirements and approval of the governmental or municipal electrical inspection departments, or of the boards of fire liability underwriters, and which is capable of being readily and easily installed in position without the usual laborious work of sawing and chiseling through the walls and ceilings of buildings for such urpose.

Another object of) the invention is to provide for a. flush fitting as characterized, and one of an extremely simple and convenient construction and arrangement of parts, whereby to greatly facilitate the installation of the same, as well as the connecting of the current carrying parts thereof in circuit.

A further object of the invention is to provide for electrical receptacles of the class mentioned, and one of a type involving a metal casing construction as required by present rules and regulations governing electrical installations, and which is of circular or cylindrical form, whereby to be readily and easily inserted into a bored or drilled opening, and without necessitating the same being enclosed within a separate box or casing closure.

Another object of the invention is to provide for a receptacle casing of the type mentioned. and one capable of receiving and enclosing the usual forms of contact carrying insulated bodies of standard forms of receptacles with but very slight modifications of the latter for the purpose.

A further object of the invention is to provide for electrical fittings of the class set forth, and one of an extremely simplified and comparatively inexpensive construction and arrangement, and embodying certain features in the assembling of the parts thereof, as will eliminate therefrom any and all possible chance for unsafe electrical connections, or the exposure of such connections, such as ordinarlly causes tires in buildings and which has heretofore made it obligatory to enclose standard receptacles in separate metal, generally steel, boxes or casings.

With the foregoing and other objects. in view, the invention resides in the certain new and useful construction and arrangement of parts as will be hereinafter more fully described, set forth in the appended claims, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure l is a front elevation of a preferred embodiment of a plug type yof receptacle,

Fig. 2 is a vertical section taken on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1,

Fig. 3 is an elevation of the front or inner face of the inner removable portion of the insulating body of the receptacle, and showing the electrical connection thereof,

Fig. 4 is an elevation of the rear or outer face of the inner removable portion of the insulating body as shown in Fig. 4,

Fig. 5 is a horizontal section through a Hush gang fitting,

Fig. 6 is a vertical section taken on the line 6-6 of Fig. 5,

Fig. 7 is a rear elevation of the gang itting shell or casing with the rear or inner portion thereof removed from position therein,

Fig. 8 is a fragmentary sectional View taken on the line 8 8 of Fig. 5, and,

Fig. 9 is an enlarged fragmentary and sectional detail of the spring contacts disposed within the sockets of the plug receptacles as shown in Figs. l and 2.

Referring to the drawing, wherein similar characters of reference designate corresponding parts throughout the several correlated views thereof, and more particularly to Figs. 1 to 4, inclusive, and 9 of the same. wherein is shown the preferred embodiment of the invention, the numeral 10 designates generally a metal casing consisting of a face plate 11 and a body portion 12 projecting rearwardly thereof. The casing 10 in its entirety is preferably made lof ies sheet metal of a desired weight, andthe face plate 11 thereof is preferably of vcircular form, while the body portion 12 is shaped into an elongated cylindrical form, so that the latter may be readily inserted into a circular bored or drilled opening until the face plate 11 closely ab-uts the wall surface surrounding such opening and lies substantiallyllush in the plane thereof. The face plate 11 is preferably formed to provide an inwardly and angularly -disposed flange 13 coextensive with its peripheral edge, and a series of equidistantly spaced and counter-sunk screw or other fastening receiving openings 14 inwardly of the said flange 13, such screws or fastening being designated as at 15 in F ig. 1. The face plate 11 is also formed with a centrally disposed circular opening arranged concentrically thereof and in alignment with the hollow center of the body portion 12, which connects the face plate 11 at the edge of such opening. rlhis center opening of the plate 11 is, however, of a less diameter than that of the interior of the casing body 12, and the wall thereof is connected to the latter by an angular wall 16, the body portion 12 and the wall 16 being integrally formed one with the other and with the face plate 11, if desired, as by the spinning or swaging inward of center 'metal of the face plate 11 which it is necessary to remove for the forming of the said center opening, or the casing body 12 may be separately formed and secured to the wall 16 after the latter has been swaged or spun inward of the wall of the center opening.

Inserted inwardly of the casing body 12 is a circular body 17, made up of a suitable insulating material, which has its forward end reduced, as at 18, to snugly t the center opening of the face plate 11 with its front face exposed through the center openingr and disposed flush in the plane of the outer surface of the latter, and also to snugly conform to the angular disposition of the connecting wall 16. This insulator body 17 is provided with a pair of diametrically spaced socket openings 19 and 20 into which are to be inserted the usual contact members or lingers of an ordinary connecting plug (not shown), the openings extending entirely through the body inwardly of the front face thereof for such purpose. The front face. of the body 17 is preferably formed to provide an upper elongated and curved depression 21, a lower and similarly formed depression 22, and a central circular depression 23, in the bottom faces of which depressions may be suitably embossed or impressed any data as may be desired by the manufacturers, such as the name of the maker of the -'receptac1e, or the trade-name of the particular receptacles, and the safe aniperage, voltage or wattage, for which the conducting parts thereof are designed to carry, the latter to be hereinafter more fully described.

Positioned within the casing body 12 in abutting relation with respect. to the rear or inner face lof the insulated body 17, is a sec- 'ond insulated body 24, which is recessed as at and 26, in its forward or inner face and to either side of a diametrically elongated opening" 27, the latterextending entirely through the body 24, and opening through the front and rear faces thereof. Embedded in the bottom faces of the recesses 25 and 26 are a pair of circular nuts or the like 28 and 29, which are arranged to have l' openings of each are aligned one with the other and with the 'threaded bores of thc nuts 28 and 29, when the screws 30 and 31 are passed through the aligned holes and threaded downwardly of the latter, suitable clearance openings er wells 36 being provided in the insulated body 21 below and in alignment with 'the threaded bores of the nuts 28 and 29 for the reception of the lower ends of the screws 30 and 31, and allow for the tightening up of the same to rigidly secure the conducting strips or plates 32 and 33, and the metal sockets 34 and 35, in position. Positioned under the heads of the screws 36 and 37 are spring contact members 38, which are, together with the other conducting parts of the' receptacle, in good electrical contact o-ne with respect to the other, and are adapted to cooperate with other forms of plug contact fingers such are so formed as to have notches or the like adapted to be snapped over the headed portion 38 of these members 38. The metal sockets 34C and 35, as shown in Figures 2 and lll() lll-3 llo 9, are preferably formed of strips of sheet i or spring metal, each strip or sheet having the major intermediate portions thereof bent substantially U-sha-pe with the free ends of the vertical legs of the intermediate portions, in turn, bent inwardly and downwardly' between the vertical legs aforesaid, and inclined'one with respect to the other, whereby to resiliently and frictionally engage a plug contact (not shown) to be inserted between the same. f

As shown in Figure 2, the rear end of the cylindrical casing body 12 is threaded as at 39 to have screwed into the saine is aV metal closure member 410, which is provided with a rearwardly and downwardly inclined tubular member orportion 41, the bore of which opens into the hollow interior of the closure, which hollow interior, in turn, opens into the diametrically elon'gated opening 27 of the insulated body 24. The inner peripheral edge of the closure 4() is formed to provide a series of bevelled facets or plane faces, preferably eight in number, and arranged to abut a corresponding number of such facets or plane faces 42 formed on the outer peripheral edge of the rear end of the. insulating body 24, whereby a tight joint is established between the closure 40 and the latter, and that the closure 40 may be retained in any desired position wherein the angular disposition of the tubular member or portion 41 may be coming conductors or B. X. cable of the electrical circuit to which the receptacle is to be connected and so accomplished without changing the position of the casing body 12 as inserted into a wall, partition or the like. The inclined tubular portion or eX- tension 41 has, when the receptacle is in position to be electrically connected in on a lighting circuit or the like (not shown), inserted therein the circuit conductors 43 and 44, the conductor 43 having its free` end bared and connected to a binding screw 45 threaded into the conducting strip or plate 32. and the conductor 44 similarly bared and (onnected to a bindingr screw 46 threaded into the conducting strip or plate 33, each of the contact plates 32 and 33 being formed to provide ears or lugs 32 and 33, respec tively, at points adjacent to the periplieries of the screws and 46, whereby to prevent the possibility of the bared ends of the circuit conductors from becoming displaced from under the head portionsof the latter. The conductors 43 and 44 are preferably carried in the usual B. X,'armoured cable 47. the armoured portion of which is projected into the tubular portion or extension 41, substantially as is shown in Figure 2, and this portion is clamped by a screw fastening (not shown) being engaged in a pair of ears 48 angularly formed at the free split end portions 49 of the free outer end of the tubulaiportion or extension 41 of the rear closure 40 of the receptacle, the portion or extension 41 of the latter being circumfercntially split as at 50 for the purpose.

With the parts assembled as hereinbefore described, and connected in circuit, the metal sockcts 34 will be housed within the socket openings 19 and 20, formed in the insulated body 17, and. with the receptacle as a whole, positioned within a wall or other surface, circuit connections to various electrical devices (not shown) may be established by the insertion into the socket openings 19 and 20, and between the resilient members of the metal sockets 34 and 35, the usual metal contact members of an electrical plug connector (not shown).

in line with the in-` `connected together at a point on the exact center of the face plate. The casing body 12, in this instance, may be made in one piece substantially oval in form with its longer side walls depressed inwardly from opposite directions to provide centrally disposed parallel wall portions 12d spaced slightly apart one to either side ofthe longitudinal centerof the face plate 11a. The front ends of the cylindrical portions 12b and 12c of the casing bodyy 12a are connected. by angularly and slightly inturned anged portions 16a, 16, to the walls of a pair of openings formed in equidistantly spaced relation on the longitudinal center of the face plate 11, after the manner of the flange connection 16 in the first instance of the invention as hereinbefore eX- plained.

The cylindrical forni of the portions 12b and 12, of the casing body 12, admits of the insertions into each, the insulated body parts 17 and 24 of first gforin of the invention, and it will be readily understood that, while only two of such portions 12b and 12c have been described for the gang form of receptacle, any number of such portions may be provided and connected to a face plate having a number of openings corresponding to the number of such portions, whereby each portion will be fitted with -insulated body parts 17 and 24, the electrical conducting parts and the metal sockets thereof being as hereinbefore :f

set forth.

lVith the arts 17 and 24 positioned in each of the cylin rical portions 12b and 12c of the casing body 12a, the rear end ot' the latter is to be closed by a member or body. preferably made of metal similar to that of the closure 4() as in the first instance of the invention. and formed to provide oppositely disposed circular end portions 40a and 40", connected together by a reduced portion 40C, the circular portions 401L and 40b'snugly fitting the cylindrical portions 12b and 12c of the body casing 12, and the reduced portion 40", the space between the parallel walls 12d of the reduced portion of the casing body. This closure member or body is Secured inA position by means of screwsor the like 51, which are threaded inwardly of the walls 12d and into the opposite faces of the reduced poi'- tion 40.

For introducing the end ofthe circuit con- Y ductors (not shown) into the rear of the casing body 12 for connection with the binding screws of the conducting parts of the linsulating bodies 24, tubular metal inlets 41z and 41b lll) are provided, and each consists of straight portions 52 snugly fitting into openings formed in the cylindrical portions 40a and 40" of the closure member or body, and concentrically thereof, and outwardly and downwardly inclined portions 53, into which are projected the free end portions of the usual armoured B. X. cable 47, if this form of electrical conductors is used. which free end portions 4T@ are clamped in position by means of a screw or bolt fastening 54C being passed through a pair of parallel eais 48 angularly formed at the adjacent split ends of the end portion 49 of the extended portion 53, the latter being split circumferentially as at 50a for the purpose. These inlets are retained in proper position in the closure body portions 40a, 40h, by means of an lar flanges, 55 and 56 formed with the straight portions 52 thereof, the outer flanges 55 thereof abutting the outer face of the closure body and the inner anges 56, the inner face of the latter, substantially as is shown in Figure 8, which arrangement allows for these inlets to be swivelled or turned in a manner to direct the extended portions thereof 41a, 41h, in a desired direction to receive the incoming conductors or B. X. cable 47a of the electric circuit to which the receptacle is to be connected. As shown in Figures 5 and 8, the inner face of the closure Atl is formed with a pair of circular depressions 57 having their peripheral walls 58 bevelled, whereby to snugly fit correspondingly formed extensions on the inner faces of the contact carryinginsulated bodies to be positioned within the cylindrical portions l2 and l2c of the casing body.

lllrom the foregoing, it will be readily apparent that the invention provides for a flush switch, plug or socket receptacle, wherein all current conducting parts are thoroughly encased within or between the insulated bodies of porcelain or the like as in the usual manner, and that these bodies are securely retained against displacement or accidental separation by being snugly tted into and entirely enclosed within a metal casing, such, as when armoured B. X. cable or the like is used for the circuit connections ofthe current carrying parts as aforesaid, will be well within the require ments of all rules and regulations governing electrical installations. llt is to be noted that the casing and closure constructions involved herein are of a much smaller size than that of present standard makes of such receptacles, as an instance of which. it is suggested that the exposed face plates l0 and 10a are to be made with an area approximately -Ll of that of such standard makes. while the body or casing portions l2 and l2", 12C, 12d, will be of a correspondingly, or nearly so, less length or depth of ifa-errar that of the bodies thereof, whereby it is possible to properly install the present form of receptacles in a much smaller surface space, and in relatively thin partitions or the like. lt is also stressed that in lieu of the plug re- 'ceiving sockets and contacts 34 and 38, and their form of insulating bodies, other interior parts of lamp receptacles, switch mechanisms or the like are to be positioned within the casing constructions with equal facility to that of the parts mentioned.

lt is well understood that, while preferred embodiments of the receptace have been described and illustrated herein in specific i terms and details of construction, arrangement and operation, various changes in and modifications of the same may be resorted to without departing from the spirit of the invention or the scope of the claims appended hereto.

Having thus fully described the invention, what is claimed as new, is

l. A casing for enclosing the insulated body portions of electrical receptacles and the current conducting parts thereof, cornprising a circular flush wall engaging face plate, a cylindrical open ended casing body extending rearwardly from the face plate and in alignment with an opening in the latter, a closure for the rear open end of said casing body, a conductor inlet extension projecting from the outer face of said closure, and means formed with sai-d extension for clamping a conductor cable inserted inwardly thereof in position.

2. A casing for enclosing the insulated body portions of electrical receptacles 'and the current conducting parts thereof, coinprising a circular flush wall engaging face plate, a cylindrical open ended casing body extending rearwardly from the face plate and in alignment with an opening in the latter, and a closure for the rear open end of said casing body and having an opening therein for the insertion inwardly to the same of the conductors of a current supply circuit.

3. A casing for enclosing the insulated body portions of electrical receptacles and the current conducting parts thereof, comprising a circular Hush wall engaging face plate, a cylindrical open ended casing body extendin rearwardly from the face plate and in a ignrnent with an opening in the latter,a closure for the rear open end of said casing body and having an opening therein for the insertion inwardly to the same of the conduct/ors of a current supply circuit, and means carried by said closure for clamping the ends of said conductors in their inserted positions.

d. A casing for enclosing the insulated body portions of electrical receptacles and the current conducting parts thereof, comare prising a circular flush wall engaging face sure, and means carried by said extension for plate, a -cylindrical open ended casing body clamping a conductor cable inserted inextending rearwardly from the face plate Wardly thereof in position. l0 and in alignment with an opening in the In testimony whereof, I hereby affix my 5 latter, a closure for the rear open end of signature.A

said casing body, a conductor inlet extension projecting from the outer face of said clo- WILLIAM R. WORKMAN. 

